Politics · Middle East

Bill Ackman urges Israel to exclude Ben-Gvir and Smotrich from its next government

Bill Ackman said Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich should not serve in Israel’s next government, arguing that their statements and actions damaged the country’s reputation. He said excluding them could help Israel rebuild credibility and expand the Abraham Accords.

AI-assisted synthesis · Based on 5 outlets' reporting · Article text read from 1 of 5 outletsHow it's made

View timeline · 7 entries

5 outlets3 regionsLatest reporting Oct 25, 8:28 PM UTC3 min read

Coverage: MixedL 0 · C 3 · R 2

File photo

Photo: דוד דנברג / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

What happened

Key facts

Bill Ackman said Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich should be excluded from Israel’s next government (per CNA, The Jerusalem Post, ua.news).
Ackman said the ministers’ statements and actions had caused substantial damage to Israel’s reputation (per CNA).
Ackman said a government without the two ministers would send a message that Israel was “turning a new page.” (per CNA).
Ackman said excluding Ben-Gvir and Smotrich could help Israel diplomatically, rebuild credibility and expand the Abraham Accords (per CNA, israelnationalnews.com).
Israel’s general election was two days away, and polls showed a close contest between Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition and the opposition (per CNA).
Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power party was projected to win around 10 parliamentary seats, compared with 6 previously (per CNA).
Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party was projected to win 8 parliamentary seats, compared with 7 previously (per CNA).
Ackman is the founder of Pershing Square Capital Management and was described as a billionaire investor (per CNA).

The brief

Bill Ackman urged Israel’s next government to exclude Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, saying their statements and actions had damaged the country’s reputation. CNA reported that the billionaire investor made the appeal on Sunday, October 25, as Israel’s general election was two days away.

Ackman said a government without the two ministers would show that Israel was “turning a new page.” He argued that leaving them out could help the country rebuild credibility and broaden the Abraham Accords. These are Ackman’s arguments about the diplomatic and reputational effects of the proposed government lineup.

The election contest could make the question of who enters the next government consequential. CNA said polls showed a close race between Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition and the opposition.

It reported projections that Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power party would win around 10 parliamentary seats, up from 6, while Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party was projected to win 8, compared with 7 previously. Those seat projections give a measure of the parties’ anticipated representation, while Ackman’s appeal concerned whether their leaders should serve in government.

The report does not say whether either party would join a governing coalition or whether Netanyahu would accept Ackman’s proposal. Ackman founded Pershing Square Capital Management. CNA also reported that he had praised Netanyahu the previous week at a conference in Tel Aviv.

Speaking there on Thursday, Ackman said Netanyahu had done a good job protecting and defending Israel since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack. The election was approaching as Ackman made his case, and the reported polling pointed to a close contest.

His appeal therefore focused on the composition and public message of the next government; the projected seat totals and the competing coalition and opposition blocs formed the immediate electoral context described by CNA.

Why it matters

The Israeli electorate faces a close contest between Netanyahu’s coalition and the opposition, while projections put Jewish Power at around 10 seats and Religious Zionism at 8.
Ackman links the proposed exclusion of Ben-Gvir and Smotrich to Israel’s reputation, credibility and potential expansion of the Abraham Accords.
The parties’ projected parliamentary representation is a concrete factor in the debate over whether their leaders should serve in the next government.

What to watch next

Whether Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power party approaches the projection of around 10 seats in the election.
Whether Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party approaches the projection of 8 seats.
Whether the next Israeli government includes Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, the question Ackman addressed.

How it's being covered

Coverage analysisShow details

5 source articles · 5 unique outlets

Outlet political mix: Mixed· 3 Center · 2 Right

Where the outlets are based: Middle East 60% · Europe 20% · Other 20%

Outlet political mix

Mixed

Left

Center

Right

0 outlets

3 outlets

2 outlets

The marker shows coverage balance: each unique outlet counts once.

Geography

Where the outlets covering this story are based.

5 unique outletsDominant coverage: Middle East

All5 Europe1 · 20%M.E.3 · 60%Asia1 · 20%

How we measure coverage

How outlets' accounts compare

Updat3 does not yet have enough full reports to compare how outlets framed this story.

Timeline

Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.

Jan 25, 1949
Israel’s proportional-representation system, established for the first Knesset election on January 25, 1949, makes coalition negotiations central to forming governments.
Background · from our historical context
2012
Itamar Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power party was founded.
Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
Sep 15, 2020
The diplomatic backdrop included the Abraham Accords, signed at the White House on September 15, 2020.
Background · from our historical context
Jun 2021
The June 2021 coalition had brought together parties with sharply different positions, including Bennett’s right-wing Yamina, Lapid’s centrist Yesh Atid, and the Arab Islamist party Ra’am.
Background · from our historical context
Jun 30, 2022
That eight-party coalition, led first by Naftali Bennett and then by Yair Lapid, lost its parliamentary majority, and the Knesset voted to dissolve itself on June 30, 2022.
Background · from our historical context
Nov 1, 2022
Israel held a Knesset election in which Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc won a majority.
Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
Dec 29, 2022
Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government was sworn in after the 2022 election.
Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3

How we got here

Israel’s November 1, 2022 general election followed the collapse of the coalition that had replaced Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in June 2021. That eight-party coalition, led first by Naftali Bennett and then by Yair Lapid, lost its parliamentary majority, and the Knesset voted to dissolve itself on June 30, 2022.

Netanyahu, who had served as prime minister from 2009 to 2021, led the opposition during that government’s term. The June 2021 coalition had brought together parties with sharply different positions, including Bennett’s right-wing Yamina, Lapid’s centrist Yesh Atid, and the Arab Islamist party Ra’am.